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2017 Home Run Derby: Aaron Judge Rises to The Occasion

by
Lungelo Mdladla
July 11, 2017

Rookie Aaron Judge toppled some of the greats as he slugged his way to the 2017 Home Run Derby title.

The 2017 Home Run Derby took place on Monday the 10th of July out in Miami. The derby attracted a massive crowd and is seen as a vital cog in the build-up to the upcoming All-Star match between the American and National league teams.

The Breakdown
Players are given four minutes to hit as many home runs they can, and every time a player hits two home runs that are 134 metres or more they get an extra thirty seconds on their clock.

Pitchers put the ball in the sweet spot to make it easy for sluggers to reach their maximum potential hit. The Home Run Derby is a spectacle used to hype up the All-Star game which takes place on the 12th of July 2:00 am. (RSA standard time)

Defending Champion Eliminated
Marlin’s player Giancarlo Stanton, hit 20 home runs in the final round in 2016, to win his Home Run Derby title. This year Stanton had it tough as he was eliminated in the first round, as Rookie and Yankee player Gary Sanchez defeated him 17 – 16.

Participants

American League

Seed	Player	Team	Home-Runs
5	Miguel Sano	Minnesota Twins	21
2	Aaron Judge	New York Yankees	30
8	Gary Sanchez	New York Yankees	13
4	Mike Moustakas	Kansas City Royals	25

National League

Seed	Player	Team	Home-Runs
1	Giancarlo Stanton	Miami Marlins	26
3	Cody Bellinger	LA Dodgers	25
7	Justin Bour	Miami Marlins	20
6	Charlie Blackmon	Colorado Rockets	21

First Round

Miguel Sano	11	–	10	Mike Moustakas
Gary Sanchez	17	–	16	Giancarlo Stanton
Cody Bellinger	15	–	14	Charlie Blackmon
Aaron Judge	23	–	22	Justin Bour

Justin Bour hit 22 homers, but Judge wasn’t phased as he coolly hit 23 – the third highest ever in a home Run Derby round.

Semi-Finals

Miguel Sano	11	–	10	Gary Sanchez
Aaron Judge	13	–	12	Cody Bellinger

Aaron Judge beat Cody Bellinger in style as he smashed a 156-metre home-run with a whole minute left on the clock. Miguel Sano beat a somewhat tired Gary Sanchez 11 – 10 to set up a final showdown with Judge.

Final

Aaron Judge

–

Miguel Sano

Sano impressed by Judge

Miguel Sano was the first to get things going, and he only managed 10 home runs, a number that seemed too measly for the Rookie, Aaron Judge.

Judge hammered home his 11^th homer with a whole 2 minutes left on the clock, dropped his bat and celebrated with his teammates.

What’s next for Judge?

New York Yankee player, Aaron Judge showed his class as he hit the longest home-run -156-metres – at this year’s 2017 Home Run Derby. Judge goes into the All-Star break with the most amount of home runs (30).

Judge showed true character and sportsmanship, easing past his opponents, one of his home runs hit the roof of the Miami stadium, and he broke the 150-metre mark more than once.

With all the hype that surrounded him, Judge asserted himself as a player to watch in the not-so-distant future. And with the season only at the halfway mark, we can expect a lot more from the rookie in 2017.

Written by Lungelo Mdladla for @Hollywoodbets.net